The Ideal Present
by animetomboy2
Summary: Rise wants to find the perfect Christmas present for Naoto, but, just what could that be? Want to know yourself? Read and find out! Also, yuri: Don't like, don't read.
1. Chapter 1: A Reality Shrouded in Fog

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any part of Atlus or the Persona games makeup or production. This is a simple fic devoted to the love of it by myself who owns a copy of both Persona 3 and 4. I hope you all enjoy.

**Description:** Note, this is told from Naoto's perspective in first person narrative. So that should be interesting, in the least. Here's another thing: This is after the TV world drama with everyone's shadows. Everyone has defeated them and accepted them, they turned into Personas, etc. But, when it all came down to it in the end, they failed and the whole world they knew became the TV world. Their realities are now shrouded in the same fog as the TV world. What new mysteries are to come of this? By the way, this indicates a small time skip. Say a year. So everyone else would be juniors in high school besides Naoto, Rise and Kanji. Anyway, plot summary, alright to the story!

**The Ideal Present**

**Chapter 1: A Reality Shrouded in Fog**

Greetings to you all. Some of you know me as the Detective Prince. Some of you know my secret and either hold it in contempt or dismiss it in unimportance. It doesn't truly make a difference to me what others do with the knowledge they learn of, it is their choices after all. However, I am rambling. Allow me to introduce myself if you are not familiar with that which I have told you...

My name is Naoto Shirogane. I am 15 years of age, soon to become 16. It's been a year since the incidents with the first murder mystery case were solved out to be none other than Tohru Adachi. If you're unfamiliar with him as well, he is a former detective of the Inaba Police Force and a traitor, nonetheless, to his own kind. A human that blends well with the shadows. It's really a misshapen thing to even dream about. Allow me to stop myself before I grow obsessive over past events. It's 2012 here in the small town of Inaba and the fog, well, everyone has grown quite accustomed it. After all, it is the daily ways of life now. When it all came down to it in the end... no one could do it. We couldn't save Inaba from this fate and thus that grostesque and weird world became ours.

"Hey Naoto, whatcha workin' on?" A familar voice spoke to me in a rather cheery tone. It was none other than Rise Kujikawa, the former idol who quit showbiz because she was fatigued from acting like someone whom she wasn't all that time. I'm glad she decided to quit when she did though or else she may have lost her true self completely.

"Oh its nothing really. I happened to be reading the new detective book recently and decided to look over the facts of our last case. Everything added up and in the end we all failed. I don't quite understand-"

"It's okay, Naoto." She paused which confused me some. What was she going to say? "We all tried our best. So what if we failed? The world isn't half as bad as Adachi-san made it out to be. Sure, yeah, he's still twisted and he's probably still out there somewhere amongst the shadows, but at least we still have our Personas right? With them, we'll just do things like the last time. Mmkay?" She smiled at me so sincerely. I began to wonder: How could she muster a smile like that to form when all our world was shrouded in the dust that originally destroyed our spirits and determination? Rise may have some subliminal strength and I may have underestimated her a bit in her ability to mask what she's truly feeling.

"That is true. Rise you're quite logical when you want to be."

"Nah that was nothin'. You shoulda seen me when I was thinkin' about what I wanted to do. Stay in showbiz or get out while I can. I felt like I was losing my mind! Anyway, you mentioned something about the new detective book you were reading? Isn't that the made up detective character with his trusty sidekick who solves mysteries to simple cases? That's a children's book. Wow, Naoto, I would have thought you'd be the sophistocated reader of all of us, hmmmmmm, I guess not." She giggled and I found a flushing upon my face appear. She was making fun of me, how dare she.

"Well, when you're someone whom relates to the character, I don't think it's that childish or petulant. And furthermore, they're very interesting cases and I like to test my brain to solve them before the character in the book does. I want to see if my predictions come out to be correct. And anyway, what does it matter to you what I read? Just the other day I saw you reading something meant for children as well." She giggled once again and then settled down from her taunting mode.

"Take it easy there, Naoto. I understand you completely. I, sometimes, like to read them myself just to reminisce over past memories and stuff like that. It's fun when you reflect on the good times you've had growing up. Sadly, that isn't a possibility for me, but I do remember reading these books when I was younger and they provided an escape for me, so, sometimes I still read them. Anyway, is this detective series something you follow regularly?" Rise seemed curious as she took a seat right by me.

"Well, I wouldn't say I regularly follow them. I mean I don't make daily trips to the bookstore in the shopping district to see if they have new additions out. But, I do consider myself an avid reader of this series. It's relatively new and so I find it still has its charm compared to the other ones. I've already read them so the storylines may have become quite jaded, in my point of view, anyway." Rise nodded.

"I get what you're saying."

"Yo. 'Sup guys?" A taller man whom seemed to have his jacket draped over his shoulders walked in and yawned; He was obviously very tired.

"Good morning Kanji-kun!" Rise exclaimed rather enthusiastically. I simply smiled softly and gave a nod in his direction, uttering only a word.

"Greetings." Once again, Kanji yawned and sat down on the chair, facing Rise and I, which implied he was sitting the wrong way in the chair to begin with. If you can imagine this, I wish you luck.

"Oh class is starting soon! We should get to our classrooms! I have to go just next door, but, if you need me, you know you can text me right guys?" Kanji and I both nodded in agreement and Rise happily skipped off to her class. Kanji, however, looked like he had something on his mind. I decided to ask.

"What is it Kanji?"

"Wha-?"

"What have you got on your mind?"

"Ain't nothin' on my mind that's troublin' me, except for maybe how damn early it is. The person who thought getting out of bed this early just to learn some crap you'll never use in life should seriously get punched in the damn face." Kanji yawned again and heard the bell ring.

"Kanji, you'll be late if you don't leave now."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm goin'. I'll be two doors down if you need me Naoto. But, seriously, I think we second years need to talk later. Just us three, y'know, without the others?" I only nodded, curious as to what was going through his mind. Kanji was always a man of few words and even fewer emotions, so it seemed.

"Alright students. How about we go about the creative learning processes in a fun way this morning? I'm not saying you have to participate if you don't want to, but, I thought this might wake you guys up a bit and get the ball rolling. Here's what we're going to do. We're going to roleplay a bit. This is a forensic science class and we haven't had a chance to deal with any sort of 'case' so far. So, why don't we learn in a fun way today? We'll elect people to be different roles and learn from their mistakes or their correct moves. Understood?" The class time passed by and soon it was lunchtime. I remembered that Kanji had something he wanted to speak to Rise and I about and so I texted them to meet me atop the school roof with their lunches. Both showed with their lunches in hand. Rise carried a bag with some tofu in a container in it, specially made by her grandmother before school. Kanji carried some food that he'd brought from home as well, some sort of ramen that his mother prepared for him. I, myself, was content with eating a simple sandwich I'd made myself.

"Soooooooooooooooo what's up guys?" Rise exclaimed again, taking a seat wherever she pleased and undoing the top on the container to eat her lunch.

"Kanji says that he wishes to speak with us about something."

"Yeah, it's about the case. You know the one we all solved together but in the end, we failed to beat that bastard...?" Kanji seemed a bit more tense than usual. All I had to do was shoot him a look and he snapped right back into check. He'd become rather good at controlling his rage.

"Yeah, I remember. What do you wanna do about it though?" Rise asked curiously.

"Well you see Rise, something is bugging both Kanji and I about the case, if I'm interpreting this correctly. We had all the evidence before us, everything fit together and fell right into place. We had the power and the means to beat him and yet, we failed in the end. Does that make any sense to you? I still soundly believe there is a chance that we can beat this Adachi and clear the fog that has become our world. I believe a restoration can occur, if we try just once more..."

"And we're the only ones that can do it." Kanji finished my sentence for me. I nodded.

"Alright, so let me get this straight here. We're going to take a whack at this old case again and try and bring down Adachi and peace back to Inaba? Sure, I have no problem with it, but, why not tell the others? After all, I'm only good for support and you two can't do it on your own. Plus, Senpai had multiple Personas he could use and Yukiko-senpai was great at healing. You need extra strength, guys." Rise took another bite of her tofu, further devouring it. She did speak of the truth, we'd be terribly outnumbered if we went in at our current status.

"You're correct Rise, which is why we have decided to wait on this a bit. The world over here won't change much. I don't suspect that, at least. All there is left now is to wait for the proper time to strike an attack. I suggest we wait for the holiday season to pass. Now isn't the time for such dramatic encounters as with Adachi, do you agree?" I spoke, then eating into my lunch a bit.

"Yeah. I don't want anything weird risin' up during this season. I kinda wanna spend time with Ma and relax. And oh, exchange presents and all..." Kanji stated while eating his lunch as well.

"Alright, then it's agreed. We'll wait for the season's holidays to pass before going into for another attempt at bringing Adachi to remorse what he has done. And when we do decide to go at it, we will inform the others of our decision." The others nodded in agreement with myself and then we moved on to talk about such lighter things as the upcoming holiday.

_**1 Week Later...**_

Today was a holiday, not the bigger one all the talk was about, but, a minor one in which we had the day off from school. Here was another possibility that I'd never even conceived before. If our world and the TV world have really become one, then there is the possibility that the shadows may reappear in this world without any such inhibition. If we lose control over our inner thoughts, it is quite plausible that they could break free of us once again and our powers of Persona would temporarily disappear. And recently, the fog had grown deeper. This was an eerie sight that I took as a rather dark foreboding.

Suddenly, I got a call on my cellphone. It was Rise.

"Hello?"

"Naoto-kun! Come quick! It's Kanji. He and I were in the central shopping district checking out some of the dolls he made when suddenly he fell to his knees and began to hold his head. The store seemed to transform right before our very eyes to a hotsprings and that's not even the worst part. You have to hurry and get down here!"

"Understood." I immediately hung up the phone. In a hurry, I grabbed my gun and began to rush to the shopping district around where Tatsumi Textiles was located. I wondered, if this were to be true, then my predictions really were palpable and not only that, but they'd come reality, at least, in Kanji's case. When I reached the central shopping district, my eyes, however jaded they'd become to things, still couldn't believe what they saw...

[End of Chapter 1]


	2. Chapter 2: Down With a Case of Rise

**The Ideal Present**

**Chapter 2: Down With A Case of Rise**

"Oh Naoto! Good you're here. It's so strange. I didn't even sense that anything was wrong with Kanji. I didn't even sense that something else was here besides us!" Rise was in a panic, and it had always been my job to quiet her. Just the same as always, I did that and tried to comprehend the status of the situation.

"Rise, I need you calm down and tell me every little detail. I need you to tell me exactly what happened of what you remember." Rise nodded and composed herself for this moment. She retraced her steps and then recalled what had happened.

"Alright, well... Kanji and I were hanging out and he said we should discuss this plan over at his place, he meant the store his family runs, this textile shop here. He insisted we talk here, but then I noticed the dolls in the window. I began to compliment on them and he was thanking me like usual in the weird way. But, suddenly, something just changed. Kanji fell to his knees and he began to hold his head as if something had just hit him or like he wasn't feeling well. This was all so sudden and so I went to check if he was okay, but, right now... I can't tell anything." Rise was almost to the point of tears. She was sincerely worried about Kanji and I could tell that this would put quite a lot of strain on her heart, which hit a note in her voice the same.

"Alright, well. Did you see anything? Was Kanji feeling ill before this event? Is there anything else you can tell me?" I asked calmly.

"No, I don't think so. All I can say is that the textile shop changed into a hotsprings right before our very eyes and Kanji, well, you know what happened with him. Other than that, nothing else happened. I put my glasses on, but, that just cleared the fog up a bit. I'm really worried about Kanji..."

"Don't worry Rise, I'll figure this out. I just need a bit more evidence first." It was then that I decided to question Kanji. It was the only way I'd get further in figuring out what was going on.

"Kanji!" He turned his head at the sound of his name. Seeing it was me, he tried his best to stand and stop the current position he was in. "It's quite alright, don't move. I just have some questions for you." He nodded, staying where he was. It would be of no use to move in his present state. "Kanji, do you know how any of this happened?" A mere shake of his head told me that he had no clue. "Alright then, have you had any thoughts you haven't shared with us recently?" Kanji, once again, shook his head. That meant he had a clear mind. Well, then, what could the answer to all this be? "Were you ill before this happened, Kanji?" He didn't respond, it seeed he was hesitating. Could that really be it?

"My, my, my... I can't tell you how good it feels to finally be free again. Being all cooked up within that tiny space of a body can become quite a hassle!" A seductive and male voice with a note of femininity to it, sounded. I turned to see who it was that had opened the doors to the hotsprings. It was Kanji. Two Kanji's... then, this other one had to be his shadow. It must be. I simply watched it with the intent of curiosity. What was it going to do?

"Oh my! Look at you! Aren't you one delicious piece of man-candy? Yesssss, you'll do fine for my little experiment here..." Kanji seemed to be flamboyantly exclaiming all of this to me, but, why?

"What experiment do you speak of?"

"Dammit..." A weak Kanji, near to my feet, mumbled before continuing to shake in what seemed like, pain.

"Ohhhhh! I'm so glad you asked you attractive man you! It's my experiment of the hotsprings and of the century! I'm going to mix a hotsprings with both men and women, my first ever both sexes place to bath. I don't care what others think, I just want to be able to be me and express myself and my love! After all, you only get one chance at romance sometimes, and if you screw it up... welllllllll, I won't speak about the pain of rejection!" The Shadow Kanji sang the last word as if it were a note in a song. Things were definitely becoming weird. But, having this conversation with the shadow seemed to be adding more difficulties to what was happening. Rise then decided to step in to this conversation with a question of her own, of course, with her composure regained.

"Are you really Kanji-kun's repressed thoughts? But, we already beat you and he already accepted you! How could you come back out when he's realized and accepted himself for who he truly is?" Rise exclaimed. The shadow only laughed in a more girly way than ever intended.

"Silly girl. You don't get it do you? Men need a place where they can be men, women need a place where they can be women. Why does the barrier between the sexes exist and what's its purpose, hmmmmm? Is it to separate the line, or rather, draw it and tell society what it is to be a man and what makes it different from being a woman? I'm sick and tired of all of it. This hotsprings will provide a place where anyone and anything can be just themselves! I vastly prefer men... you know this and you accept it... but, there is a specific kind I prefer of all the rest..."

"NO... STOP, bastard..." Kanji murmured, again, weakly and on the floor.

"One kind of man specifically? Mind elaborating for me what it is you mean?" I questioned. If my guess was right...

"I just said it didn't I? I prefer the mysterious types, sort of like a detective that can also be very sensitive and down to Earth. Man, what I wouldn't do to get me a hunk like that! And you fit the criteria perfectly, my dear, sweet, Naoto. Ahhhhh, the feeling of love... how it just makes everything disappear. No one is taunting you about what you like, what you do, and why you enjoy doing it. Love, it's a great thing!" There was a pause. So, my guess was right. However, I did not know what to do with this. Then, it continued.

"Naoto Shirogane... how that name just rolls off my tongue so pleasantly! It's like a song, nooooo, better, a symphony of words meant only to be spoken by me! Face it hun, I'm the only one that would ever say your name so sweetly, so lovingly. I can just imagine it! Oh, us in an embrace, sharing dinner together and even taking baths together! Come, Naoto, you attractive, cute little detective you, why don't you take a dip with me? Relax, let your mind be at ease... and let the scents of love fill your nose and body with delight... Oooooh, my body just tingles with excitement thinking about it!" Kanji giggled and I happened to have a flushing on my face again from what was going on. Rise, of course, filled with the essences of romance herself, dreamily giggled about what would go on between Kanji and I, if ever given the chance.

"Damn you... frickin' Shadow... I thought I told you to stop...ugh..." Kanji was forcing himself to stand up. He was rather weak but, still, he persisted. I wondered what it was he was going to do. Please, don't try to fight it Kanji.

"Stop? Oh, but why would I? I'm only saying the things you've never had the balls to say yourself Kanji. And you call yourself a man? A real man wouldn't be scared to admit his true feelings to one of his dearest friends. A real man wouldn't try to deny what he feels in his heart as nothin' and focus on more important matters. And a real man wouldn't be in permanent denial, stuck in the past, in love with some memory! You need to pull it together Kanji, boy, and confess! Confess to this wonderful boy right here that you love him..."

"Damnit! SHUT THE HELL UP! What makes you think you can stand here and talk all that shit with my face again? It ain't true, I'm tellin' ya. It ain't true!" Kanji started to yell at the top of his lungs. He was losing controlling, this wasn't good.

"It's the same as last time, Kanji, dear. You're me and I'm you. That's alllllllll there is to it. It's simple, really, once you get it down. Now, confess and tell all your true feelings! Say that what I speak is the truth and set it free. Ahhhh, it feels so marvelous, exposing it all..." Both Kanjis had the same blushes on their face as I did previously. This was surely turning into an episode all its own.

"Shut the hell up already! You're not me!"

"Hahahahahahahahahaha, and so the fate is the same as before again. You shouldn't have said those words you naughty boy! Let the barrier between the sexes be destroyed by my own creation! MY HOTSPRINGS RESORT!"

"Rats! Here it comes, get ready Naoto!" Rise exclaimed and I nodded. Kanji, unable to resist the power pouring out of the shadow, collapsed and fell over, unconscious. Rise got Himiko ready and I stood with my gun, ready the upcoming battle.

"I am a shadow, Kanji's true self... it's sad that he keeps rejecting me. It really is! I try everyday to muster enough courage to push him to tell you, but, he never does. He always pretends that I don't exist and casts me away! Well, I won't have it anymore! I'm sick of it all! A real man would admit to his feelings. The feeling of pleasure he gets when he makes dolls and sells them. The feeling of rage he gets when someone hurts his feelings and then the small bit of sadness afterward. And the love he feels for a certain close person in his life he'd be sad if he lost. Boo-hoo, cry me a river! Why don't you just confess already? It'd make things a LOT easier!"

The battle began. Rise began to analyze the shadow as soon as it stopped talking. I looked to her for the support necessary to beat the shadow easily. However, this wasn't going to be easy. Sikuna-Hikona was only good at instant kill attacks and things that took a toll on my health, that I couldn't risk, with Kanji.

"Rise, I'm going to need backup. Phone as many people as you can and try to call them to this spot. Tell them it's an emergency. We're bound to get one or more of them. If not, all." Rise, finding no weaknesses for the shadow, decided to temporarily deactivate the usgae of Himiko and phone some of our colleagues to help us fight. I began to shoot the shadow with my gun and attempt to hit a vital point. I had new weaponry; That is, I had new bullets I could use. There weren't just regular bullets; there were poisonous bullets, sleep inducing bullets, all kinds of them, and I plan to use them, to stall.

"Ouchie! That wasn't very nice of you, prince. Here, why don't I show you how much love hurts?" Kanji's shadow hysterically slapped me aside as if I were nothing but a rag doll. This fight was going to be impossible, unless I had the means to defeat him. That means, happened to be extra power.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Mmmmmmmmm, that steak was delicious Yosuke! That had to be the best cut I've tasted in a long time. Your cooks here have seriously gotten better." Chie smiled in appreciation. Yosuke smiled too.

"Well, of course. We're always looking to do better for our customers. What'd you think of the fried tofu, Yukiko?"

"It was delicious! It was even better than the ones that the cooks at our inn make themselves. Yosuke, in the food department, I could really say you've improved." Yosuke smiled again in appreciation.

"Hey guys, do you remember when this used to be our special headquarters for meetings about the TV world?" Chie recalled with a note of sadness in her voice.

"Yeah, but, those days are over, sadly. We failed in the end, and in the coming year it seems Adachi was telling the truth. That the world we knew and the TV world would become one and that there would be this overruling fog. He wasn't lying. But, so far there've been no sights of Shadows, so that's good." Everyone agreed.

"Yes, I agree. It could be much worse than it is already. I miss Souji, he went back to his hometown. I say he was lucky to get out while he could. But, still, that doesn't mean he won't be missed. Anyway, it's been a while since anything exciting has happened around town. Do you find yourselves pretty bored with your lives again, or is it just me?" Yukiko questioned.

"Yeah, I've begun to feel the same. We're juniors in high school, third years. That means our high school career is almost over. We have to start planning where we wanna go for college and deciding what line of work we wanna train in. It's all so much and all I wanna do is have fun. Time is always scarce when it comes to that, huh?" Chie stated, then sighed.

"You bring up a point Chie. I don't wanna graduate and have to come straight here everyday, even earlier since there's no school. Sure, I may have a future at Junes but I don't wanna find that out as a sure thing right now. I'm 17, I have a live to live!" Suddenly, Chie's phone began to ring and all three were silent.

"Chie here." Rise's voice told her everything in a panic and minutes later, they both hung up. Chie nodded in a bit of worry too. "Hey guys! We have to hurry! Put on your glasses! Something's happening down at the shopping district. She says it's important that we're there so we can back Naoto up. Do you think she means a shadow?"

"Well, there's only one way of knowing. Let's go!" Yosuke exclaimed and the three ran off the shopping district as hurriedly as possible.

...

The shopping district around Tatsumi Textiles was even more a reason to worry than before. I really did need the backup. In the past, I imagine Kanji's shadow must have shown itself within the TV world to the others and thus they had to defeat it as said challenge is presented to me at this moment. However, I did not believe that any shadow could be as tenacious as Kanji's is. Mine may have been a pain to deal with for the others, but, this brutal strength was almost as much as I could take.

"Dammit..." Kanji mumbled off to the side. Rise was scanning the creature left and right. But, of course, it was to no avail. His attacks were unknown, of course, until he decided to use them. And his weaknesses would be judged on what attacks he could use. If this was anything like Kanji's persona, he would have used an great bolt of electricity to damage my health; However, he continued to use physical attacks in an aggressive attempt to passify my attempts to disposition him.

"Don't strain yourself Kanji. You need to have complete faith in Naoto that she can hold them off long enough for the others to get here. I phoned Chie, she is coming with Yosuke and Yukiko, that should do it. Rest assured, nothing's going to happen and besides, we've all seen each other's true selves before right? There's nothing to fear with this one." Rise spoke as she gently smiled. Kanji, unable to find the energy to combat Rise's kind words, fell unconscious to the floor and lay there, as if sleeping.

"Is all you aim for to cause me pain, prince? Come sweet Naoto, stop hurting poor old Kanji. It's me, after all. I am your friend, but, I know we can do better than that! I may like it when you treat me a little bit rough, but shooting me isn't kind, it isn't nice, and it certainly isn't romantic. Do I have to do everything here? Fine, I'll teach you the ways of romantics, starting with a basic understanding." Kanji laughed again in a somewhat feminine way and it seemed this time he was going to use an attack. Instead, somehow, he weakened me. Was this understanding he spoke of a deeper feeling, so deep in fact that it weighs the body down? This must be the pain he is feeling.

"Oh, I certainly hope you liked that! Because it was oh so pleasurable to me! Hmhmh, alright! Now that you understand that, time to move on to charm!" Kanji blew a kiss directly at me. I did not dare doubt for a moment that Kanji's methods of understanding romantics were indeed, strange. But, suddenly, I was feeling light on my feet, no more of that heavy feeling. This one felt peaceful and when I looked at Kanji, my face couldn't help but flush. What was going on here?

It was then that Yosuke, Chie and Yukiko arrived on the scene with ample time to spare. Chie was the first notice that something was, indeed, wrong with me.

"H-h-hey guys, Naoto's acting pretty weird. Is something wrong with her?" Chie questioned in fear.

"She's charmed!" Rise exclaimed, suddenly sensing what was going on here.

"Wait, what? She's charmed. How?" Yosuke questioned.

"Look, it's Kanji's shadow?" Yukiko pointed out that Kanji was standing over by the transformed Tatsumi Textiles the same as he was in the bathhouse the first time.

"Yeah. I'm guessing then that Kanji's shadow did this. Is he the one that charmed Naoto? Uh oh, this isn't good. We need to de-charm Naoto somehow and then fight this thing and defeat it! You guys ready?" Chie asked, Yosuke and Yukiko both nodded in reply. Sooner rather than later, I was de-charmed from the state I was in, no longer feeling as if I wanted to do unmentionable things with Kanji and shoot anyone whom got in the way of that. This feeling that washed over me was relief, when I saw my friends here.

"Alright, we need to hit him with power and all we have. I don't know the power of the original one you guys faced when we first solved the case, but I estimate it to be about this strength. If not, he may be even stronger." I spoke whilst Kanji was powering up. Understandably, he did not like when reinforcements arrived on the scene to aid me and to undo what he just did to me.

"So, you little party poopers think you're going to ruin my date with dear sweet Naoto! Well, think twice! It's a pity that you all had to die like this!" Kanji exclaimed, preparing for an attack. It was then that everyone seemed to snap into a battle position, ready to fight.

"Yeah, think again Kanji!" Yosuke exclaimed at the top of his lungs, summoning his persona. At the same time he did this and proceeded to attack with Garudyne, a sufficiently damaging wind move he learned, Chie summoned hers and used Bufula, an efficient ice move. Whilst the two of them were attacking him with their own elements, Yukiko called forth Amaterasu and released upon Kanji the flames of Agidyne, a powerful fire move she'd learned as well. And I, of course, did the only thing I could possibly do and try to damage it with shooting bullets of every kind. My attacks were instant kills, not helpful against a shadow. However, the method of attacking him all for one was undeniably working. Kanji was having difficulties fighting off each of the elements throwing themselves at him, and more or less, protecting himself from them. It was clear now, that we'd need to continue.

We did, and in a matter of time, Kanji's shadow fell over. This was our chance to strike as a group. We all valiantly rushed in to attempt to do whatever we could to damage Kanji's shadow in any way possible. It was weakening, but the battle would pursue on if something didn't happen soon that could stop him.

"Dammit! We need to hit him again! Come on everyone!" Yosuke exlaimed once more and then everyone proceeded to do their attacks, the same as last time. Kanji, to the voices of his friends screaming, woke up. At first his vision was blurry, but, quickly, he sat up, then stood up and watched as his friends tried to defeat his shadow again. The shadow before had claimed things of love for me and a personal wish to be with me, to go on dates and romances of the such. Then, if what I see is really true...

"Hey you!" Kanji exclaimed to the shadow. All attacks ceased fire and it seemed the air was silent, except for the heavy pants of our tired bodies and Kanji's voice. "Where do you think you get off saying all of that shit huh? You think you can just appear out of nowhere and say all kinds of crap as if it didn't matter huh?" Kanji walked straight up to his shadow. The image painted was that he had no fear. I admired his boldness. "I'm tired of you spewing bullshit as if it didn't matter. It does matter and it does have meaning! So you know what? Shut up!" Kanji punched the shadow and he fell back. "Now you listen to me dammit! There ain't no way I'm denyin' my feelings, they're there, I have them. But, we're all people, we all have them. I guess what I'm really tryin' to say is that I feel that way, you're right, so no need to put it in the headlines okay? Now, please, let me do this on my own. I'm sorry I ever doubted you." Kanji's shadow suddenly vanished and the Tatsumi Textile building returned to its normal shape and form. Kanji's persona had been restored and then, suddenly, he walked up to me. "Listen, Naoto. I'm sorry you had to hear all of that. Back when I thought you were a dude, it sort of got me a little anxious that you said you were curious about me and who I was. Curious if anything strange had happened to me lately. I didn't know why, but I do now. I've always had these feelings for you, hidden inside of me. I'd deny them like there was no tomorrow sometimes, but, now I understand, in order to truly be a man you have to own up to your feelings and look the person right in the eyes and say you love them. Confessions... eh they're hard as shit and I'm not exactly good at them, but, now you know at least how I feel, alright?" Kanji smiled softly with a small blush painted on his cheeks. I only looked at him and then picked my words carefully on what to say in response.

"I do admire the courage you've acquired to tell me this, Kanji. However, it's unforunate for you that I do not return those same feelings to you. I apologize for the unrequited love you must deal with. But, if it facilitates things for you, you can always remain my friend." Kanji took a pause before smiling and offering me his hand to shake.

"Yeah, I'd like that." I took his hand in mine and we shook on it. The friendship between us was as strong as ever. I was just about to speak what was on my mind before once more, Chie butted in with a question that would allow me to jump to that topic.

"So... why did Kanji's shadow just appear like that out of nowhere? I mean, he couldn't have had any more repressing thoughts. I thought we beat him before and that was that, that he accepted himself."

"Yes, Chie you're correct. But, this leads me to believe that this is a different kind of shadow. One that doesn't necessary say that it is your repressed thoughts we you may be fighting against. Think about it. When we fought everyone's shadow in the TV world prior to what's happening now, we were fighting against the repressed thoughts they couldn't say out loud or admit to themselves or anyone else. Kanji has no shame in admitting he likes making dolls and because of that it's made him more of a man than before. However, this shadow confessed to me that he loved me, that he wanted nothing more than a romantic night alone with me. That cannot be a thought so much as a wish. And since it is a loving wish, it would be from the heart yes? Kanji have you had any dreams about me?" Kanji's face painted the color of a rose, once more.

"Yeahhh, actually. I have, it's kind of embarrassing actually." He rubbed the back of his head, trying to hide his shame. But, for me, this was right on point.

"Exactly. Did anyone ever hear of the expressions, 'Dreams are wishes your heart makes'? It's an addage that came from an American company named Disney that is quite popular. What I believe is that this shadow emerged from Kanji's heart and revealed anything that happened to be sitting in the darker parts of it. Namely, his love for me. Since he couldn't say it out loud but his heart was yearning to tell me, the shadow took the liberty of doing that itself and was brought forth from his heart. These shadows are no more than suppressed feelings and the wants of those feelings." I nodded, quite satisifed with my explanation.

"So, what you're saying is this thing came from Kanji's heart. Yikes. Well, that's a bit scary. I wouldn't want anyone finding out about my feelings if mine showed up." Chie said quite worriedly.

"What? Chie? You have feelings for someone?" Yukiko curiously questioned, confused as to why she didn't tell her.

"No! No, nothing like that. I mean, the things that normally people want to keep secret, I wouldn't want my secrets being exposed, that's all. Hehehe." Chie laughed nervously, almost as if she were hiding something. Yukiko decided not to pry any further into Chie's feelings and left the situation alone for now.

"I suggest you all be careful or this might happen to you. If there is a burden on your heart, somehow make sure you rid of it quickly. But, still, I cannot thank you all for showing when you do and helping me save myself and Kanji." A smile curved its way on my lips and they all returned it the same.

"Sure, it was no trouble Naoto. Any time you need us, just call. We'll be there for you." Yukiko smiled.

"Yeah we're friends and friends don't give up on each other!" Chie said happily.

"Yeah, I agree with what Chie said, I'm just not into this mushy garbage. I mean we may be friends but we're not one big happy family. Man, I'm tired, can I go home now?" Yosuke yawned, complaining about his personal issues, as always.

"Sheesh, Yosuke. All you do is complain. Can't you do something, anything else but that?" Chie was a bit annoyed. It was about ten minutes later that my friends left the scene, even Kanji went inside to rest up a bit. That left Rise and I alone. I was gently reconfiguring the bullets in my gun when she walked over to me, talking to me in a gentle tone.

"Hey there Naoto."

"Hello Rise."

"So we're the only two out here?"

"It seems so."

"Yeah. So, um, you don't have anything like that do you?"

"What is it you mean?"

"Well, I mean... feelings for someone else, do you?"

"I refuse to answer such questions." I continued to fix the gun and I shot a bullet to test if it worked the same as before. It was fully operational, as planned. I placed it back in my holster before switching my gaze to meet Rise's eyes. Under the setting sun, I never realized how beautiful she truly was. Her skin seemed to just naturally glow as if it were the floating orb of light itself.

"Awww but why not? We're friends and I promise I won't tell you if you do." Rise smiled cheerfully. The way her smile just wanted to make me smile for endless hours with no purpose or reason, it was, curiously strange.

"Romance is not one of the topics I fare well in discussing, Rise."

"Like I said, I won't tell! And you can trust me on this one. I'll take it to the grave with me. I mean you said it yourself, if we have any burdens on our hearts we should rid of them now." Her voice gently reached out to me and caressed me with its soft, melodious tones. Then her hands grabbed mine. What... was happening?

"That is true. But..."

"Naoto." My eyes look curiously at hers and that's when she leaned in to press her forehead to mine gently. She gazed into my eyes as if she were staring straight through my soul. A light flush came upon my face from such closeness. Then, she continued her soft speech pattern.

"Your secret is safe with me." Her eyes. The beautiful shades of brown they were made them appear as if little balls of chocolate, caramel, even. A beautiful color indeed that, if she gave you the right, sweet glance, you'd melt into her very vices. You'd fall for her charms and the luscious flavors of her personality if you let yourself be drawn in to. She was truly a piece of art, as beautiful as the sculptures and paintings in the museums. And strangely, I found myself wanting more of this intimacy...

[End of Chapter 2]

Author's Note: Uh-oh folks! What's happening here? Well, time to wrap the story up I guess. Stay tuned for Chapter 3!


	3. Chapter 3: Case Closed

**The Ideal Present**

**Chapter 3: Case Closed**

The next day was rather a strange one. Rise didn't even seem to acknowledge my existence, much less throw me a glance to know that she saw me. It was as if I wasn't alive. Had what I'd seen and heard yesterday been a lie? Had it been some sort of game she was playing? Had it been some sort of role she was practicing for in secret? Or could it have been a shadow? Either way, my head was beginning to fog the same as the dense fog outside, not a very good sign, if you ask me.

"Hm..." There, I sat, though the lunch bell had rung. The students happily dismissed themselves, heading off with their friends to eat their lunches and speak of whatever was popular in the news at this current time. I, however, oblivious to all the motion around me, stayed stagnant at my desk, seemingly having something on my mind. My eyes briefly caught a glimpse of Rise walk by my class doors. She was intentionally giving me the cold shoulder, a treatment not so much favored by the victims. It was usually given to someone if they'd done something wrong, however, I'd done nothing as far as my memory serves me, and if correctly. It was then, when the classroom was empty that a knock on the door woke me from my thoughtful slumber.

"Hey there, Naoto-kun." A voice called out to me softly. It was feminine and it sounded like one of my friends a grade ahead of me. My head picked up to see who fit the description of the voice I'd just heard. As predicted, the voice matched the profile conjured in my head.

"Greetings, Yukiko-senpai. May I ask what it is you're doing here? This is a second year's class and you're a third year. Shouldn't you be off with Chie-senpai and Yosuke-senpai discussing college?" I stood up, not really meaning to sound cold or pretentious in any way. It was a curious thought. The look in my eyes somewhat told her that and, gently, she smiled back, approaching me.

"I thought I'd eat lunch with you today, if that's alright with you. Besides, college can wait. I have many things to manage already between helping my family with the Inn and trying not to get into too much trouble with this Persona of mine." A light giggle escaped from her vocals and I nodded quietly.

"Sure. I have no objections to you eating with me. But, if I may suggest going someplace else? The scenery here does not mix well for a meeting over lunch."

"Then, let's go up to the roof then. I know others are there, but, if we sit all the way on the other side, no one will bother us. Besides, it would give us privacy in case we wanted to let some things on our minds go." Yukiko did seem like she had been stirring about something. I wondered what it was, however, she'd come out with it in time. For now, all I could was follow her up to the roof, where, we both sat and unwrapped our lunches, beginning to eat.

"Yukiko-senpai."

"Hm?"

"Is there something you needed my help with?"

"Why do you ask, Naoto-kun?"

"When you came into the classroom so directly like that and asked if you could have lunch with me, something felt off at first. As I let the situation continue, you asked to come here with me and sit all the way off so that we'd have privacy. The only thing I could think of that could link to you wishing to speak like this is that something is on your mind." Yukiko giggled in amusement. However, I did not see what was so funny here.

"Ah, that's our detective for you. Once a detective, always one. Though your assumptions are correct Naoto, I do have something on my mind, and I'd like your advice on it." Yukiko stopped eating for a moment, contemplating how to word what she was going to say.

"I'll help any way I can. What is it?" I smiled softly.

"Some time ago, you remember when we helped you defeat Kanji's other self again and you came to the conclusion that it was the manifestation of his heart and his heart's wishes, not of his thoughts?" I simply nodded. "Well, you told us all to rid of the burdens on our hearts. That's what I wish to do, but, I simply can't find the courage to do that. You see, over the years I've been at Yasogami High, I've fallen for someone, and I think, fallen pretty deeply." Yukiko had a distinct blush on her face indicating that she was inevitably thinking about said person. I only admired that she were capable of feeling such great things.

"So, if I may ask, who is the lucky person?"

"Well, back when my shadow first appeared, Chie and the guys told me that it said things about finding a prince to take me far away from here. To help me run away from my hometown, my duties and responsibilities, and most importantly, my life here and my friends. It told me I didn't have the courage enough to do such a thing and that I'd have to find a strong prince to aid me in doing it. Yosuke, Souji and Chie came to my rescue in that castle and that's when, after I joined the team, that I truly realized and thought about what my shadow said..." Yukiko paused, again finding the words to say this correctly. I understood, this wasn't easy. "I've found that prince, but I don't want that person to take me away from here. What matters is that I've found this person, right? The problem is, I don't have the courage to tell them how I feel. So, what should I do, Naoto?"

"I have no suggestions until I know the identity of this person. However, judging from the use of 'this person' and your choice to stay 'general' with this whole prince idea, are you speaking of someone I know, perhaps?" Yukiko only nodded quietly. I gave her the chance to speak, it seemed she found the wording of the sentence now.

"Yes. It is someone you know. You're friends. It's someone you know very well." Yukiko paused again, perhaps for dramatic effect. That, I didn't understand much, but, I went with it. "Mitsuo, Yosuke even, Souji, all of them, I've turned down. I turn guys down everyday. Some of them are nice and respectful, some I wouldn't mind going out with if my heart weren't already devoted to this one person. There's a reason I fend off the guys that ask me out and why I erase them from my memory. This person, by gender, may not be a prince, or the ideal prince image, but, she is a prince to me. She's always been there, she's always strong. She almost gave her life for mine once and that's something I never want to see happen again. No, I want to stand up and fight for her and how I feel and be together with her..." Yukiko didn't seem to want to conclude her sentence. So, if my analyzations were correct...

"But the fear and pain of rejection and unrequited love may inhibit you from doing what you wish to do. Well, I suggest you expose this information to her before your shadow finds it reason enough to come out and attack you as Kanji's did. I have a question for you, that is, if you don't mind me asking." I looked her right in the eyes and she stopped blushing, focusing on my gaze.

"What is it?"

"Would this person you, perhaps, speak of, be Chie Satonaka?" Yukiko's eyes averted from my gaze and looked downward into her lunch bowl, it was still steaming, mimicking the fires of love within Yukiko's heart at this very moment.

"Yes. It's Chie. Chie and I have been best friends since, well, it almost seems like forever. Since we were little. She's always been there for me, she's always given me courage to do things I would never have the courage to do in the first place. But, when it comes to this, especially, I have nothing. No courage, no confidence, no nothing. That is why I need your help, Naoto. I need to know what I should do to tell Chie I love her." Yukiko seemed desperate. Knowing Chie, I schemed something together in my head pretty quickly.

"Alright. Chie-senpai, as I've noticed, loves martial arts movies, does she not? When she next goes to the Samegawa River to train, go with her and insist to train with her. Insist you wish to become stronger. She'll accept, you two are best friends, after all. After all that, make sure she does not come home with you, say you have an emergency at the Amagi Inn and dash off. What you'll really be doing is cooking a steak dinner for Chie-senpai, make some for yourself as well and eat it. When you two sit down to dinner, you can play with the lights a bit by having this take place at the Amagi Inn. Tell the electricians to temporarily sever the lights cables in the room you two will be eating in. This makes candlelight accessible. As seen in movies and plays, candlelight is the most romantic type of lighting there is, so that should be the ideal moment you tell her. If you still cannot tell her, you have two options to choose from. You can keep it secret long enough so that your shadow appears and you'll have to fight it off, but it will confess. Or, you can have me tell her for you and after that, this situation becomes of what you make of it." I thought that was pretty clear. Yukiko nodded, thinking a moment.

"I see. I think I get it now. I might do that, that's not such a bad suggestions. Thank you Naoto for helping me."

"It's not a problem at all, senpai. But, if I may ask, why did you come to me for advice on the subject? You know I am fairly inept at speaking of love and romantic things."

"You seem to know more than you give yourself credit for. You're smart and when it comes down to it, I need an analyzation of the situation. When you analyze the facts and bring everything together in an investigation, the solution should become clear. It's the same thing with this really, I need advice on what I should do for this situation I'm in. You took in everything I told you, analyzed it and gave me the advice or the solution you thought could work best to resolve it. And what better person to turn to for an analysis than an ace detective?" Yukiko winked and I smiled in embarrassment, no longer able to combat her claims with any of my own.

"Thank you, I suppose. I do wish you the best of luck with this situation with Chie-senpai."

"There's just something else that's bugging me a bit still."

"What is it?"

"When I walked in to the classroom today to ask if I could eat lunch with you, you were as stoic as the statues in the lobby to our inn. It seemed as if something caught you in an inescapable daze. Your thoughts must have really been deep for you to not acknowledge I was there till I spoke. So what's on your mind, Naoto?"

"Nothing really, just of the events that happened yesterday."

"Hm. The events that happened yesterday. Kanji's shadow, are you refering to? That's nothing. Why spend your time thinking about that? I mean, I admire that Kanji had the courage to say his true feelings to you, but still, there has to be something else bugging you, no? My gut tells me it's something else." Yukiko eyed me with a meaningful glare. It was about time I got serious.

Clearing my throat, I spoke, "After everyone left yesterday, Rise and I were still standing outside Tatsumi Textiles. The sun was setting and I was fixing my gun to see if it worked properly and if I hadn't done any damage to it from the battle. Rise began to speak to me softly and asked me things if I had any hidden feelings I wasn't exposing. I simply told her what I told you, that I don't fare well in romantic dicussion. She told me any secret I told her would be held in her confidentiality. That it would be taken with her to the grave. Still, I had nothing to say, however, she intimately was holding my hands and looking into my eyes with that capturing gaze of hers. And her forehead was pressed to mine, it was all very, intimate, as said." A small flush appeared on my face as the scene in my head replayed as if a cut in a movie. It would not stop reviewing in my head and that was what bothered me the most. "After a while, we simply parted ways and today she pretends I don't exist. She deludes herself into thinking nothing of me. I don't understand why that could have been."

"Well it seems to me from that little description that you sort of like Rise. I could be wrong here, but, I'm just going with what I think is going on. So yesterday, she was all over you and the intimacy and today she's giving you the cold shoulder. Well, you never know, something could be bothering her emotionally too, and she just doesn't know how to deal with it. More or less it could concern you in some way and she doesn't have the strength to look you in the eyes because either way she'll have some sort of eruption, right? I could talk to her for you and see what's going on, if you want. Or I could leave it alone and leave the detective work to you, whatever you choose, Naoto." Yukiko smiled gently at me and I thought for a moment.

"The detective work is normally left to me of the group. I admire all of your input on this Yukiko-senpai, but, this still troubles me. It could be that you're right and that she is managing some emotional stress concerning myself and that is why she cannot recognize my presence. Or my thoughts lead down the worst road possible, it could have been a shadow I came in contact with yesterday and I might not have known it. There are endless possibilities as to what it could be, but only one truth."

"Yes, and you have to find that truth, whatever it takes. Oh, looks like lunch is going to be over soon. I should be heading back to class and then to do the thing we spoke about after school, but, I'm just a call away if you need me for anything." Yukiko smiled gently and stood up, leaving me respectfully and walking back to her classroom to take a seat in her usual chair. I, lingered a bit longer and sat there as the wind blew over, I did enjoy the cold somewhat. It was only after the bell rung twice that I got up from my spot and walked back to my seat in class to resume learning.

_**After School...**_

The bells rung, signifying the end of school for today. Students gathered their books up and went out the door to hurry home. Some stayed and went to their after school activities. I, however, slowly gathered my things, remaining in the classroom as I did before. The flashbacks of yesterday could not stop playing over and over in my mind, it's as if someone were hitting replay. I tried to shake it off and concentrate on what I was doing, but every so often, the scene would play again and my face would flush. On my way out, in the hallway, I ran into Chie and Yukiko walking together. Both greeted me with a smile and a friendly greeting.

"Hello Naoto-kun."

"Hey there Naoto."

Yukiko, then Chie, said cheerfully. I smiled in return.

"Greetings to you both. Are you on your way home, Chie-senpai?"

"Me? No. I'm in the mood for training today, so I'm going to Samegawa to do some of that. But, the funniest thing, Yukiko asked to come along! Haha! Isn't that great. She says she wants to train with me and get stronger. I thought that was crazy talk for Yukiko here, but, she really does want to learn." Chie smiled happily at Yukiko whom glanced at me and smiled as well.

"I see. So, you both are going to venture to the flood plain then? Well, I wish you safe traveling and of course, have fun training." I nodded to them.

"Will do! And you be safe getting home too Naoto!" Chie shouted to me as she was waving, down the hallway from me. I had already started on my way out when, of course, at the doors, I ran into Yosuke, Kanji and Teddie.

"Naoto, sup dude?" Kanji asked me when he spotted me headed their way. It was strange. Of all the people I've run in to, I haven't seen Rise. If I could run into her that'd complete our party members.

"I was just on my way home to do some work."

"Why don't you come out to dinner with us, man? We're going to Chinese Diner Aiya and I hear they have the best nikudon. They even have a challenge for who can eat the most in the least amount of time. I think we should try it and you should come along." Yosuke exuberantly exclaimed.

"Teddie is issued this challenge and Teddie accepts this challenge. Teddie is going to win this battle! He is beary prepared to beat Yosuke at the Nikudon Eating Competition. I will sniff and sniff and sniff until I find its weakness and when I do find it I will take it down with everything I've got!" Teddie, the ever enthusiastic one, exclaimed with some sort of ridiculous motion that mimicked the tone of his words.

"I think I'll pass. My apologies, but I would lose anyway. And I have many things to do. If you'll excuse me." I started for the door. All of them shrugged behind me, respecting my wishes of not wanting to tag along. I began my walk home only to be greeted by the cold breeze of the midst of winter.

_**Weeks Later...**_

Christmas Eve. It was rather a lonely holiday for me, as I was spending it alone. I was sitting on my comfortable furniture, watching the news on TV. Boredom did seem to be a key factor in the situation at the moment.

Suddenly, my phone began to ring. Enticed by who could be calling me about what, I picked up.

"Hello?"

"Naoto. I'm so glad I reached you." Yukiko's voice spoke on the other side of the phone with glee. She seemed unusually happy.

"Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Yes. The thing you suggested I do went well and it worked perfectly. I went to Samegawa with Chie and trained. By the way, she does a lot of kicks. Suddenly, I rushed off like you said and cooked the steak for her and myself and invited her to stay the night at the inn with me. She agreed and ran right over. In the midst of our meal, the electrician cut the powerline and thus we resorted to candlelight. Long story short, it was incredibly romantic and I told her how I feel."

"That's great. You'd be surprised at what you can accomplish if you set your mind to it. How was her response?"

"Well, at first she was shocked that I'd been doing all of this just to get her attention fully on me to know something was up. She'd also been shocked that the steak I cooked was actually good. But, getting serious she said she couldn't believe that's the way I felt and even though she was taken aback by my confession, she confessed to returning the same feelings for me. So, it all worked out in the end!" Yukiko's voice rang with a note of happiness that just infected me enough to make me smile on the other end of the phone.

"I see. Well that's great that it all did come together in the end. Case closed for yourself. I wish you happiness and-" I was cut off by Yukiko's sudden interjection.

"How are things going with the Rise situation? Did anything happen?"

"No. Unfortunately, she has yet to talk to me about anything."

"Well that stinks. It's Christmas Eve, you'd think she'd come around by now and spend the holiday with you, exchanging presents. Chie's coming over in a matter of minutes to exchange gifts with me. If you want you can-" It was my turn to intervene within the midst of her sentence.

"I'm quite content here. Don't worry about me. Have fun with Chie-senpai and Merry Christmas." Yukiko wished the same before gleefully hanging up and awaiting the doorbell to ring with anxiety. I plopped back down on the same comfortable furniture I was previously on, resuming watching the news. It was only after about five minutes later that I heard a fainting knocking on my door. As I shut the TV off, the doorbell rang and I knew, for sure, that someone was at my door. I got up and lazily, went to answer the door. When I slid open the door, I noticed it was raining outside immediately and a very cold, wet, and shivering Rise was standing outside, seemingly upset about something.

"Rise..." I said with surprise.

"Hi." She answered back meekly.

"What are you doing-"

"Thought I'd come over. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Why don't you come inside? Standing out in the rain like that will only get you a cold." I welcomed Rise into my house and closed the door so that none of the rain could enter beyond the doorway. Immediately, I went into the bathroom and grabbed a towel, drapping it over her shoulders lightly to warm her up and dry her off, all the same.

"What brings you to my house at this time of night, in this weather?" There was no answer. Rise didn't even look me in the eyes. All she focused on was the furs of the towel wrapped around her, clutching it closer to her form. I decided to ask again. "Rise, what brings you here, if I may know?"

"If you want me to leave, Naoto, I can do that, you know." She answered again, not looking at me. It seemed she had a bit of a soft undertone to those harsh words just said. I questioned this.

"I do not wish you to leave. There is no reason for me to wish that. But you don't have to answer the question if you don't want to. I was just about to make some hot chocolate, would you like some?" Rise then looked at me and nodded with a small smile on her face. The smile though had the essences of sadness hidden in its curves, the curves only my trained eyes could see. I began to make the hot chocolate as Rise sat there, more dry now than before, but still shivering. After finishing making the hot chocolate, after ten minutes that is, I walked over with two steamy cups in my hands, handing one to her and keeping one for myself. I still looked at her and she stared into the bottom of the brown liquid in the cup. There was silence for a few moments between us, neither of us knowing what to say, no thoughts emerging in our minds. That is, until she initiated a conversation with me.

"It's Christmas Eve."

"Yes, I'm aware."

"I'm surprised it's raining. But the cold air makes the rain all the more chilly and cold when it hits your skin. Goodness it was freezing out there!" Rise shivered more and took another sip of her chocolate drink, then bringing it away from her mouth once more. Then, she looked at me. I noticed how the chocolate in the cup matched the color of her eyes under the dim lights of my house. Both were a delicious treat to enjoy.

"Yes. With the icy air it's bound to be cold. You wouldn't want to take a warm bath or shower, would you? I have hot water, it may warm you up. You could stay the night." What really was confusing me was not that Rise suddenly decided to speak to me like this, but, was that I was saying all these things, offering them as if I wanted to give them away, as if I were auctioning them away. It didn't make sense; Words just seemed to spit out of my mouth before I could even think to what I wanted to say.

"No, that's okay. I wouldn't mind going back home in this weather after I warm up a bit. It's just really sad that Christmas Eve has this sort of weather and no one I can spend it with. And I told myself this time of year I'd already have a cute boyfriend to date!" Rise pouted and it was only then that I realized she was holding something. I looked at the clock, 11:45, 15 minutes till midnight, and 15 minutes till Christmas.

"Rise, it would be nothing less than insane of you to walk home in this weather at this time of night. I urge you, for your own safety that you please stay here with me this evening. It is for your own good. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something happened to my friend while she was walking home. Many things can happen in this weather, I've seen it before." I was saying all of this consciously, I knew what I was saying; The problem was I didn't know why.

"Thank you Naoto, for looking out for me. I appreciate it. And I guess you're kinda right." She nodded and took another sip. It was only then that I realized she'd been holding something in her hands with a bow attached to it. My eyes looked at it curiously and she looked down at it, her eyes catching the droplets of rain as tears.

"What is that?"

"Oh this. It was supposed to be your Christmas present, but, as usual, I screwed it up. Stupid stupid stupid! I just can't do anything right. First, I mess up with the showbiz people and my manager. I can't even score with Souji because he was interested in some other girl, plus he moved. And now this." She handed me the present. It appeared to be the latest book of the detective series she saw me reading the other day but it was completely darkened to hardened ash. It must have been burned. The title of the book was not legible, nor was the text inside it. I looked up to Rise for an explanation, to which, on cue almost, she gave.

"You see. The day I saw you reading that book, I decided that I should stop and get you a present at the bookstore for the holidays. They had the new addition of it out so I bought it and kept it with me, even reading it sometimes on the job to keep me entertained. But, something happened to the book one day at work. I was making Koba tofu at Marukyu for some customer who specifically ordered it. As I was handling the ingredients to make it, I left the book unattended, a little to close to the grill, it caught fire and the whole thing burnt to ash. The smoke rose to the ceiling and the sprinklers came on, cooling down the flaming book to that and wetting me in the process. Anyway, I went to the bookstore the next day to see if they had any more copies of that version out, but, they had none. Supposedly, the last was sold earlier that day to another high school student interested in reading it. I gave up trying to find another book since that is the only bookstore I know in Inaba. And as you can see, I couldn't come up with anything else to give you as a present, so I stuck with that crappy thing. So... Merry Christmas Naoto-kun." Rise tried her best to put on a fake smile for me as she looked me in the eyes. Her tears were over as she explained the full story to me, only taking in little breaths to keep herself calm. I nodded.

"So you gave this ruined present to me anyway."

"Yes and I know you hate it. I just thought... it doesn't matter anymore. You can do what you want with that... thing, I'm going to go home now." Rise stood up and I followed her. She didn't dare move, surprised at my sudden outburst.

"I told you to stay. Now, please, listen to what I have to say." Rise calmly nodded and sat back down, looking at me with intent. I thought for a moment, whilst looking at the burned book and started to smile as I did.

"What's the big idea, Naoto? How come you're so happy?"

"You refered to this as an inadequate present for my liking. I would agree with you. It's indeed inadequate. However, I've learned that it's not the materials you encounter in the case that make the case better or worse, one of your favorites or a dreaded job, but the thoughts of those involved with the case that matter. What I'm getting to is, your thought of me when you bought this book is what matters and it is ultimately what counts the most in this situation. I want you to always remember that." Rise nodded and continued to listen. This time, I had a question.

"Although, I am curious still, why did you become so cold to me weeks ago? If I remember correctly, the day before you started acting icy, you were very warm and intimate with me, after beating Kanji's shadow. You asked me if I had any burdens upon my heart I wanted to rid of. I simply said no. My question now is, do you? Is that why you were acting so coldly to me?" Rise simply nodded.

"It was about this present thing. I didn't know what to get you. I wanted to get you this 'ideal present' fit for only you. So I thought that detective book would be perfect. But it was just my luck that it got ruined and that I couldn't find another one. I stuck with that grimy thing hoping in some form you'd like it and see the good in it, which you did, as usual. But, I still feel horribly about it..." Rise looked down.

"If you're worried over this book not meeting your expectations for a perfect present for me, do not worry any longer. As I've said, I appreciate that you even spent the time to purchase the book for me. I shall keep it as a reminder, a memory of you." Rise nodded and smiled, this time, sincerely. I continued. "Yes, and unfortunately, I decided to get something for you. However, I do no think it's adequate either." I got up and went to pick up a pink box decorated with flowers on the exterior as a design and handed it to Rise. When she opened it, her eyes light up and she just seemed to radiate the same as she did that other day. My heart may have skipped a beat. It was a matching shirt and pants pajama set that seemed very cozy to sleep in. She cuddled them close to her body and then placed them back in the box carefully.

"Thank you Naoto! These are so cute and just my style!" She giggled in that famous way everyone knew as 'The Rise Giggle'. I nodded in response and she was speechless for a moment more. Then she asked something to me, breaking the silence between us.

"Why'd you think it was inadequate?"

"I did not know your size or your style or if you'd even like them. By process of elimination and deduction as well as with the trustworthy help of Yukiko-senpai and Chie-senpai did I achieve my goal of finding the perfect set of pajamas for you. I'm only glad that you like them." Rise smiled and giggled once more.

"You're so silly you know that Naoto! Gosh, you could have gotten me a broken microphone to sing into and I'd be happy with it. It'd be better at least than singing into my comb every morning. My grandmother sees me doing that and she thinks I'm crazy or something. Naoto, I really appreciate this." Rise scooted over to where I was, now, sitting and kissed me gently on my cheek. Both of our faces flushed with a pinkish color to our cheeks and we could no longer establish eye contact with one another. Rise, however, went back to glooming over how her present was good enough, again.

"Yeah but I'm really really sorry Naoto. I only wish my present could have come out better and more clear for that matter."

"I only wish it could have too." The mood was right and I was beginning to understand what was happening. I was going to go with my gut feeling on this case inside of me and hopefully, my estimations were correct. "Up till now I've been so blinded by the influence of others and the facts that never seemed to matter, really. I've let myself be deluded by the unimportant things that do not need attention. How is it possible that I could have been so blinded all this time to the resolution of this case, when it was right in front of me?"

"There was another reason I wasn't speaking with you at school too..." It seemed we were both speaking at the same time, though listening to each other.

"Looking over all the facts and recalling all the events that happened. Compiling the evidence, the conclusion is simple.."

"There was something bothering me. And I didn't know how to say it, at all..."

"I was afraid I'd never find the clarity and then I'd lose you..." I said softly. Rise continued as well.

"I was afraid if I told you, it'd all become clear and I'd lose you..." Rise blushed and looked down. Suddenly, we both stopped to contemplate for a moment and then we found each other's gaze again. I, this time, stood up and sat next to Rise, looking her directly in the eyes, unafraid of anything anymore. The smile upon my lips curved to fit just right, revealing my happiness to a Rise, not too far from my form. She happened to lean in and adorably press our foreheads together again, her chocolate brown eyes melting me into her vices. My heart was pounding like a drum.

"I love you Naoto." She finally said, fearlessly and somewhat vulnerably. "I've fallen for you really hard... so don't hurt me okay?" She seemed search my eyes for an answer, and then, I replied.

"I wouldn't ever dare hurt one of my friends or colleagues. But, now I see. The ideal present was never a book or anything else you could buy with money to begin with, she was sitting right in front of me this whole time. It was you, Rise. It was your heart that was my ideal present, all along." I smiled and brought us closer in the slightest. She giggled and smiled, knowing that I returned the same feelings, but waiting for me to confirm. "I love you too Rise Kujikawa." At that moment, the clock struck 12 midnight and she kissed my lips with such undying passion I felt they'd go numb. We both smiled into the kiss, staying warmly in the others' embrace. For a moment we parted and we were back to the same position we were in prior to the kiss.

"Merry Christmas Naoto-kun."

"Merry Christmas, Rise-chan."

And another sweet kiss was shared between our locked lips with the same passion as before and even more of the endless, restless love flowing in the oceans of our hearts.

[END OF CHAPTER 3].

Author's Note: Awww, isn't that sweet? I hope it was. ^^ Anyway, give me some reviews on what you guys think and I appreciate you reading this story. Thanks so much and I hope you enjoy it. But that's all folks, for now. :D


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